Poonam Pandey’s death hoax: Good cause with a bad taste?
Poonam Pandey’s stunt to raise awareness about the HPV vaccine has received backlash on social media; Schbang, the agency that conceptualised the campaign, has issued an apology
Model-actor Poonam Pandey’s fake death reports have led to divided opinions with some calling it a stunt in bad taste while others said that it will lead to increased awareness about cervical cancer – what was initially circulated as the cause for her death.
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Pandey said it was aimed at raising awareness about the need to take HPV vaccine shots.
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A negative response from netizens with many saying that they felt cheated, led to Pandey, Hauterfly and Schbang coming out with an apology.
While the campaign was done in association with Hauterfly (a Fork Media Group Company), it was conceptualised by Schbang. The post said: “We are deeply apologetic to those who may have been hurt due to the initiative. We understand that our methods may have sparked about the approach. While we regret any distress caused, if the move results in spreading awareness and preventing deaths, that would be it’s real impact.”
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e4m reached out to brand experts to understand whether this was the right way to raise awareness for a sensitive topic like cancer with a sensitive topic like death. While some experts said that this created more buzz around Pandey than the cause others felt that the same could have been executed differently.
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Samit Sinha, Managing Partner, Alchemist Brand Consulting, said, “I don’t think the intention behind the stunt was actually to raise awareness on the cause, it was to raise awareness about Poonam Pandey because maybe she has become irrelevant. I think the intention was wrong which is why we saw such reaction by people. Second, I think the stunt was more like a ‘cry wolf’, so when something happens, people will think it is just another stunt.”
Speaking on the matter, Nisha Sampath, Brand Consultant, and Founder, of Bright Angles Consulting, said the initiative created awareness about Poonam Pandey. "The digital agency, Poonam and the action they desired from us – all lost. So nett, nett – it was a loss If her faked death led to thousands of women checking ‘what is cervical cancer’ on Google – then yes, she raised awareness. But battling cervical cancer is about more than spreading awareness. It also requires action (early vaccination). The focus should be on the desired action that we want consumers to take. Instead the entire focus has now shifted to Poonam Pandey and the gimmick. And in the backlash and anger about her disclosure – no on wants to take the information on the website seriously or act on it. They don’t trust it. And that’s a loss."
Meanwhile, N Chandramouli, CEO of TRA Research, said, “Poonam Pandey’s stunt is similar to what Fever FM did recently where they said, they are going to shut down. Unfortunately, alot of people might now lose respect for her due to this stunt and it is not great for anybody. I feel she is the victim here for executing such an initiative.”
Chandramouli further said such a shock to audiences is not a good way especially when it’s a matter of death. “It was such a good cause but not the right way to spread awareness. Shocking people in such a way is a very wrong move.”
